All Present at Every Mass which is the Worship of Heaven

01-25-2026Weekly ReflectionFr. Leonard F. Villa

In 1928 Pope Pius XI issued an encyclical letter on the love of Jesus Christ to counter those who portrayed God as a distant and unforgiving Judge. It emphasized this love, but also called on Catholics to make up for the rejection of the Lord and His love. This is called reparation: (making amends) for sins and ingratitude towards God. This idea of actively striving to atone for one's sins and those of others, with God's help, counters the notion that human efforts are essentially futile and that sin is almost inevitable. In the prayer at the end of the encyclical letter, it prayed the following:

At the same time, mindful of the fact that we too have sometimes not been free from unworthiness, and moved therefore with most vehement sorrow, in the first place we implore Thy mercy on us, being prepared by voluntary expiation to make amends for the sins we have ourselves committed, and also for the sins of those who wander far from the way of salvation, whether because, being obstinate in their unbelief, they refuse to follow Thee as their shepherd and leader, or because, spurning the promises of their Baptism, they have cast off the most sweet yoke of Thy law. We now endeavor to expiate all these lamentable crimes together…

Listed was this: the violation of feast days, that is, Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation which are just like Sundays. In this century Pope John Paul II wrote a whole reflection, called the Day of the Lord, about Sundays the Lord’s Day ignored by so many. Sunday Mass is the foundation and confirmation of all Christian practice. For this reason, the faithful are obliged to participate in Mass on days of obligation, unless excused for a serious reason (for example, illness, the care of infants) or dispensed by their own pastor. Those who deliberately fail in this obligation commit a grave sin or mortal sin. They should not present themselves for Communion until after confessing those sins and receiving absolution.

You cannot pray at home as at church. We should all pray at home, morning prayers, evening prayers, prayers before meals, reflective prayers of the heart are all necessary and important, but these are not Mass and the worship that God deserves what He is owed! Religion is a virtue which falls under the cardinal virtue of justice. The basic meaning of justice is to give what is owed to someone. The first three of the Ten Commandments are what is owed to God through religion and the next seven commandments are what is owed to our neighbor.

On December 31st the Church prays the following as the Opening Prayer at Mass: Almighty and ever-living God, who in the Nativity of your Son established the beginning and fulfillment of all religion…. Prior to God becoming flesh humanity was incapable of offering God what He deserved because there was nothing that human beings could offer God that was equal to or sufficient until Jesus. As God He is equal to His Father, as Man He represents us. He bridged the gap between God and fallen humanity.

In the first Mass ending on the Cross, Jesus, bearing all the sins of humanity, surrenders His life as Priest so that all could be reconciled to God. The Mass is the same (!) sacrifice as the sacrifice of the Cross: the Priest is the same Jesus Christ; the offering is the same, His Body and Blood, the altar is the same, His sacred humanity. The only difference is that at Mass the sacrifice is unbloody under what looks like bread and wine.

The 3rd Commandment: Remember to Keep Holy the Lord's Day

Why did God “bless the Sabbath day and declare it sacred” (Exodus 20:11)? God did so because on the Sabbath day one remembers God’s rest on the seventh day of creation, and also the liberation of Israel from slavery in Egypt and the Covenant which God sealed with his people.

For what reason has the Sabbath been changed to Sunday for Christians? The reason is because Sunday is the day of the Resurrection of Christ. As “the first day of the week” (Mark 16:2) it recalls the first creation; and as the “eighth day”, which follows the sabbath, it symbolizes the new creation ushered in by the Resurrection of Christ. Thus, it has become for Christians the first of all days and of all feasts. It is the day of the Lord in which he with his Passover fulfilled the spiritual truth of the Jewish Sabbath and proclaimed man’s eternal rest in God.

How does one keep Sunday holy? Christians keep Sunday and other days of obligation holy by participating in the Eucharist of the Lord and by refraining from those activities which impede the worship of God and disturb the joy proper to the day of the Lord or the necessary relaxation of mind and body. Activities are allowed on the Sabbath which are bound up with family needs or with important social service, provided that they do not lead to habits prejudicial to the holiness of Sunday, to family life and to health.

The first precept of the Church (“You shall attend Mass on Sundays and holy days of obligation.") requires the faithful to participate in the Eucharistic celebration when the Christian community gathers together on the day commemorating the Resurrection of the Lord.

The fourth precept (“You shall keep holy the holy days of obligation.") completes the Sunday observance by participation in the principal liturgical feasts which honor the mysteries of the Lord, the Virgin Mary, and the saints.